Erica Slaughter

Erica Slaughter is one of the most compelling and enigmatic protagonists to emerge from independent comics in recent memory. Introduced in Something is Killing the Children #1 (October 2019) from BOOM! Studios, written by James Tynion IV with art by Werther Dell'Edera, Erica arrives in the small town of Archer's Peak following a string of brutal child disappearances. She is cold, methodical, and carries a massive enchanted bag that hints at a mythology far deeper than what the surface story reveals. Her debut issue is already considered a landmark release for BOOM! Studios collectors, with early printings commanding significant premiums on the back-issue market.

What makes Erica so fascinating is the gradual unraveling of her true nature. She is no ordinary monster hunter — she is connected to an ancient and clandestine organization known as the Order of St. George, a secretive society dedicated to hunting creatures that most humans cannot even perceive. Her God/Eternal origin ties her to something primal and overwhelming, and her abilities reflect that: she possesses extraordinary tracking instincts, a supernatural acuity of sight that allows her to see monsters others cannot, and a mastery of weapons that borders on the superhuman. The tension between her haunted humanity and her near-mythic purpose is the emotional engine of the entire series.

Erica's story expanded significantly through the Home arc and subsequent storylines that deepened the lore of the Order of St. George and the Black Masks, a splinter faction within the monster-hunting world. These arcs recontextualize everything readers thought they knew about Erica's past and her complicated relationship with the creatures she hunts, delivering some of the most emotionally devastating and visually striking issues in the run. The series also spun off into the connected universe of House of Slaughter, which explores the Order itself and further cements Erica as the lynchpin of an expanding mythology.

For collectors, Something is Killing the Children represents exactly the kind of ground-floor opportunity that defines smart back-issue hunting. First print copies of issue #1 are genuinely scarce, and variant covers throughout the run have attracted serious attention from both horror fans and indie comics enthusiasts. Tynion IV's rising profile following high-profile DC work brought new eyes to this series, driving demand even higher. Whether you are chasing a raw first print or a graded high-grade copy of Erica's debut, her books represent some of the most exciting and narratively rich collecting in modern independent comics.